Series: Bloodlines #3
Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. Alchemists protect vampire secrets – and human lives.
In the aftermath of a forbidden moment that rocked Sydney to her core, she struggles to draw the line between her Alchemist teachings and what her heart is urging her to do.
Then she finally tracks down the elusive, enigmatic Marcus Finch – a former Alchemist who the organization denies exists, and who lives in shadows, on the run. With Marcus’s help, Sydney realizes that the group she’s been loyal to her whole life has been hiding the truth from her. Is it possible that her golden lily tattoo might have more power over her than she thinks?
As she struggles to come to terms with what that might mean, Sydney is compelled to use her magical powers to track down an evil magic user who is targeting powerful young witches. Using magic goes against everything she always thought she believed, but she realizes that her only hope is to embrace her special blood – or else she might be next.
Forging her own way is harder than Sydney ever dreamed. Maybe by turning off her brain – and following her heart – she’ll be able to finally figure out where she belongs.
3 Drink Me Potions
The Indigo Spell diverted from the crazy plots of book 2, The Golden Lily, and had gone into a totally different direction. Boy, does our protagonist Sydney have a lot going on in her life.
1) She totally went against her Alchemist beliefs and has started practicing magic with her witch/history teacher
2) Adrian Ivashkov, aka vampire Moroi, has declared his love from afar for her
3) Some psycho witch is out to get other strong witches, and that road points towards Sydney as well, ’cause you know, she’s got to be a powerful witch on top of excelling at everything else she does
Oh and 4)? She’s found rogue ex-Alchemist Marcus Finch, and now there may be a ton of Alchemist conspiracies and cover-ups she’s questioning
Can things get any crazier? Apparently not. I think. Let’s just set aside the idea of tracking down the vampire hunters, aka the deluded Warriors of Light, for another time because this book is filled with tons of things other than that. Not that I blame Sydney, ’cause that’s already a lot of things to do at the same time.
For once, this 3rd book departs from spending a ton of time with all of the gang that’s been isolated at Palm Springs. Thank goodness for that too, because to be honest, that Eddie and Angeline romance thing freaks me out a little. Can I just shake Jill and tell her to claim her man before it gets even weirder? Please, Jill, just go confess to Eddie. It’s driving me insane! Anyway, that’s most of what goes on with them, although I do miss their banter at times. But like I repeatedly said, there are TONS more crazier things to deal with.
There are A LOT of Adrian and Sydney times though, much to my delight. After what went down at the end of The Golden Lily, I was intrigued to see how Sydney could get over her Alchemist beliefs. Might be helpful considering she’s hanging out with ex-Alchemists and shoved into Adrian’s path at every which way. I love their chemistry and the patience Adrian has with her. Out of all the characters, the two of them have grown the most so far. There are so many different facets that Richelle Mead has shown in Adrian here. Sure, he’s still that witty and charming young guy who flirts with girls and with trouble. But he’s also sensitive and loving and romantic.
If that was considered character development, I don’t know how to describe Sydney’s almost 360 degree change. She’s someone so tangibly real to me. Maybe it’s because we share a love of knowledge, though I must say, she takes it to the way, WAY extreme than most academics I know. Her growing attraction to Adrian isn’t something she can deny and it was deliciously fun to see her breakdown to his charms and patient love for her.
Amongst the romantic scenes, there are also the dangerous, action scenes. From witch chasing and warning young girls from getting their life sucked out of them (literally) to breaking all the rules she’s grown up with to do something for Marcus, there’s plenty of things to satisfy just about anyone. Who said any good romance story couldn’t also contain an equal amount of excellent butt-kicking action? Once again, no true closure for any of the plots that were laid out here, but I think I’ve resigned myself to wait for some epic conclusion in the last installment. Better not disappoint me, Richelle Mead!
Overall Recommendation:
The Indigo Spell is no disappointment. In fact, it adds onto the already big list of crazy things that’s going on in Sydney Sage’s life. With plenty more action and danger coming her way, Sydney is forced to be with Adrian at nearly every turn, which makes it harder for her to deny the attraction that is there between them. Although missing the ever-present interaction of her dear vampire friends, the banter and excitement of what Sydney and Adrian are attempting to do with a witch hunt more than makes up for it. Here’s to another chapter of the Bloodlines series that continually makes for a good read.
Down the Rabbit Hole 